Introduction and posting description of first time felling a non-tiny tree

mharlos

Treehouser
Joined
Oct 18, 2016
Messages
5
Location
Manitoba, Canada
Hi there,

I've been learning a lot from this great site - what a wonderful resource!

We recently purchased a cottage in Northwestern Ontario with about 1.2 acres of mostly aspen, with some birch, bur oak, white spruce, and balsam fir. It will be a great place for our new grandson to explore as he grows up! I decided I needed to learn the basics of chainsaw use and tree felling. There are a number of standing dead or dying aspens, and a couple of hung-up blown down trees.

The only trees that I intend to take down are the dead/dying ones or the hung-up blown down ones. This is a bit of a dilemma, as they are also the ones that people advise be left to the pros.

I have a healthy respect for the importance of knowledge and safety in such work, having had a family member die in a tree felling accident in his 20s. I've had a small Stihl (MS250) for about a decade, which I've only used to cut up smallish logs that end up on our riverbank every spring thaw in the back yard of our house. To prepare for dealing with the trees on our property, I've been reading as much as I can get my hands on (including Dent's Professional Timber Falling; Jepson's To Fell A Tree; and I have Mr. Beranek's Fundamentals of General Tree Work on the way - I recognize his incredible contribution to these forums and to the general knowledge base that we all benefit from).

I've watched some good, bad, and ugly YouTube material. There's actually quite a lot of good information out there (e.g. BC Faller Training Std; Workplace Safety North; Chainsaw Basics; Murphy's channel; Terry Hale; the Stihl and Husky videos, etc.). Even the bad and the ugly can be learned from, if you can get through some of the ones where people remove the very limb that is supporting their ladder, or various other misadventures. I didn't video the experience below, lest I tempt fate and become one of the "epic fail" series.

I don't do anything without chaps, helmet/face shield/ear protection, cut-resistant gloves, and steel-toed boots. I bought a Stihl MS261-CM, and have used it quite a bit (for me, that is) bucking fallen trees, and practicing face cuts and bore cuts on stumps. I took down the hung-up blown-down aspen, following the method described in this video, which gave me lots of wood to buck and split for the stove.

I wanted to share my recent experience with my first time felling a tree that was of any significant size. It was a 52 ft aspen, 16 inches diameter. It was pretty much dead, and was near the lake shore where kids play; I was afraid that in a good wind it would come down, or a dead limb might. It was about 15 feet from an outdoor sauna, but leaning (about 5-10 degrees) towards the marshy lake front. I was concerned that there might be a a rotten core (it sounded rather hollow), and that the dead limbs/trunk at the top might come down on me as I worked. I kept a close eye upwards as I cut, and my son-in-law watched from a safe distance up the hill.

I cleared an escape path. It may have been overkill, but I decided to hook up a line to reduce its chance of falling on the sauna (see pics). There was very little tension on the line - mostly just pulled up the slack.

Here's the base of the tree, the escape path, and the line that I set up:

PA160002-sm2.jpg AspenFelling3sm2.jpg

GuideLine-sm3.jpg

As it had a bit of lean, and perhaps not much integrity at its core, I decided to make a shallow face cut, then a bore cut, then cut the back strap. There was also a bit of a side lean, and I put a wedge in that side after bore cutting, hoping to encourage the fall in my intended direction. I'm not sure if wedges have any effect when the back strap is still holding things together? I thought it would at least create some pressure in the right direction when the back strap was cut. It the picture, you'll see it wasn't the best face cut in the world - part of the problem was the rotten wood, but most of the issue was the fact that I need more practice.

I was surprised to see not only wood dust in the centre, but it was mixed with a lot of insulation from the nearby sauna; I couldn't find any entry point to the trunk, but something had been using the insulation for nesting (i.e. squirrel). You can see the insulation in the detail pick of the stump.

Notch-sm2.jpg

StumpDetails-sm2.jpg

StumpeSize-sm2.jpg

FallenTree-sm2.jpg


Anyways, just wanted to share this early experience for me, and express my gratitude to those who own/run, moderate, and contribute to this site! I've made a donation to contribute in my own small way!

I am embarrassed to say how much I thought and planned about this tree, and how much I worried - especially when I see the kinds of things you all do! Part of my angst may have been the knowledge of what can go wrong and how unforgiving physics can be when heavy things fall.

In the end, it fell exactly how I hoped it would, and where I intended it to. :)

Regards,

Mike
 
And that's a helluva a first response...from Jerry himself. Cool that those of us still learning this stuff get feedback from bona fide pros.

Don't worry about over-thinking the tree...worry about UNDER-thinking one. It's the things you didn't realize could go wrong that might get you. Good plan, good execution. I am sure that many of the trees that I take apart into pieces could be done in one swell foop by the pros here. But when they aren't with me to do it I have to plug away with what I am comfortable with. I increase my ventures a bit as I go to try new things I learn here or that I see other guys post. The skill - and confidence - level slowly goes up.

Too confident too quick...big trouble. As Burnham says... "Confidence is the feeling you sometimes have before you fully understand the situation."
 
Your post is a manifesto, Mike, and how you learned what you did epitomizes the opportunities available today, through the internet, for anyone to gain the lore of practically any trade today, old school and new school alike. Oh, but don't get cocky!

Now, since having made your post, and admitting your weaknesses, you are red meat.

I trust the members of the House will have mercy on you. They did on me.
 
A bored back cut is a fairly advanced technique for a first fell. Properly set restraint line, too. Looks like you made a clean and controlled fell to me. Well done, and welcome.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #13
Thanks very much Burnham! It's places like this that are so helpful to the learning process.

I practiced the bore cut quite a bit on various stumps - there are lots of stumps out there with mysterious slit-like holes in them :)

I also took sections of logs before I split them for firewood, strapped them upright against something, and practiced bore cutting through them. I really helped to get the feel of the process - penetrating with the lower corner of the bar tip to avoid kickback, avoiding cutting through the hinge, keeping the bar level, trying to leave enough of a strap at the back, etc.

What surprised me a little bit was when the bar reached the decayed central core of dust and insulation, there was none of the resistance that I was used to feeling - it went through more easily than I expected, and the saw revs went up quickly.

One thing I definitely didn't do correctly was after I cut the back strap and saw the tree start to go, I didn't keep my eye on the tree, but followed my escape path with more nervous excitement than was called for. It will take me a while to develop the "calm haste" needed, and to walk away while not taking your eye off the tree yet not stumbling on things such as rocks that couldn't be cleared from the path.

Oh, well - live and learn! Or perhaps that should be "Learn, and live!" (seems like a good tenet for this kind of work)


Thanks again everyone,

Mike
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #16
How did you find us, Mike?

I was looking for information on safe tree felling, particularly with a tree with a bit of a lean. In addition to the bore cut, one of the results included the Coos Bay cut, which of course led me here! :)

The wealth of information and respectful atmosphere of sharing and education kept my attention! It's obvious that this is a safe place to ask questions and learn, from some of the leaders in the field. :thumbup:

Mike
 
I agree, there are some very kind and informative folks on this forum, I'm glad you found it. Great job felling the tree, That's a mighty big Aspen!
 
Welcome Mike! The information and feedback here is from beginners to some of the best tree professionals around the world! Best part is they're willing to leave feedback and enjoy teaching others as you can see already.
 
Great story, Mike! Thanks so much for sharing it.

Your experience of the Treehouse is just about identical to mine. These guys and gals are wise, patient, generous, and kind.

You've found the best tree forum on the Web and hit the motherlode of online coaching! ;)
 
Excellent story Mike, glad to hear that your first fell went so well, and I'll second Burnham's comments - those were some rather advanced techniques. You found the right place to learn and ask questions (even the stupid ones, sometimes they're the ones that need to be asked/answered the most). I've picked up so much knowledge, tricks, tips, and techniques from this site and Ger's book I can't imagine doing tree work without it, and living to tell about it.
 
I reckon you get major points for being brave enough to make this your first post!
Good job mate and nice to see someone really taking time to practice stuff in a controlled way FIRST...your stumps with 'mysterious slit like cuts in them'.
Each tree will be a new experience, when you have a think about them after they are done, you will realize what you've learned or had reinforced...
 
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